Duff & Phelps, the premier global valuation and corporate finance advisor, today announced findings from its 2016 report on celebrity brand values in India. The report, Embracing the Change: A Concise Report on India’s Most Valuable Celebrity Brands, is the second edition of Duff & Phelps’ study.
“This year’s report recognizes the rise of women celebrity endorsers to the top of the brand value rankings” said Varun Gupta, Managing Director and Japan and Southeast Asia Leader. “In our 2014 celebrity brand valuation report we forecasted a change towards female celebrity endorsers becoming A-listers. That change has definitely been realized over the last two years.”
The report highlights evolving trends in celebrity endorsements, including increased usage of co-ownership models whereby celebrities hold an ownership stake in the brands they endorse, an increase in the use of celebrity endorsements in the e-commerce space and an increase in celebrities leveraging their brands through extensions into both related and unrelated product endorsements.
2. Duff & Phelps 2
Table of Contents
Contents Page No.
Preface: Embracing the Change 3
Summary: Celebrity Brand Values 4
Introduction: Celebrity Brand
Endorsements in India
5
Understanding Endorsements: Overview of
Celebrity Brand Endorsements
7
Understanding Endorsements: Current
Celebrity Brand Endorsements
9
Recent Trends: Celebrity Endorsements in
Ecommerce
11
Recent Trends: Co-Ownership Model of
Endorsement
12
Recent Trends: Celebrity Brand Extensions 13
Methodology: Our Approach and
Methodology
14
Conclusion 17
A Concise Report
on India’s most
valuable celebrity
brands
3. Duff & Phelps 3
PREFACE
Embracing the Change
Dear Readers,
It gives me great pleasure to present the second edition of our concise report on
India’s most valuable celebrity brands. The theme of this year’s report, “Embracing the
Change”, recognizes the rise of women celebrity endorsers to the top of the brand
value rankings. This is something that we predicted in our 2014 celebrity brand report.
It has been an exciting year for Duff & Phelps in India. This report follows the release
earlier this year of the third edition of our report on Brand Values in the Indian Premier
League ("Playing with a Straight Bat"). The report was very well received by our
readers and the media. The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) even
acknowledged our valuation analysis in its Annual Report for the year 2015-16.
Following up on our last report on celebrity values, we now focus on some of the
recent evolving trends in the celebrity endorsement space. Celebrities are increasingly
becoming angel ambassadors for start-ups under a co-ownership model, whereby the
celebrity co-owns a part of the business venture which he/she is promoting. Celebrities
are also leveraging their brands by venturing into related business areas as well as
extending their brands into unrelated businesses. In another recent trend, ecommerce
/ online companies flush with investor money have also started using celebrities in
their endorsement strategies to gain traction and mind-share.
We hope you find our analysis interesting and we look forward to your feedback.
Yours sincerely,
Varun Gupta
Varun Gupta
Managing Director
Duff & Phelps India
4. Duff & Phelps 4
Celebrity Brand Values
(1) Previous rank as determined in the first edition of this report titled Waiting for the Encore, published in 2014.
In our 2016
celebrity brand
value rankings,
female
celebrities take
two of the top
five spots as
compared to
none in the 2014
rankings.
Celebrity Name Brand
Rank
Brand Value
(USD Million)
Previous
Rank1
Shah Rukh Khan 1 $ 131.2 1
Virat Kohli 2 $ 92.5 4
Deepika Padukone 3 $86.1 7
Salman Khan 4 $ 58.3 6
Priyanka Chopra 5 $ 44.9 11
Ranbir Kapoor 6 $ 36.6 2
Ranveer Singh 7 $ 35.7 New
Hrithik Roshan 8 $ 34.1 8
Mahendra Singh Dhoni 9 $ 31.1 3
Amitabh Bachchan 10 $ 26.4 13
Kareena Kapoor 11 $ 25.5 10
Anushka Sharma 12 $ 24.5 14
Akshay Kumar 13 $ 23.9 15
Alia Bhatt 14 $ 22.6 New
Katrina Kaif 15 $ 17.8 9
Total value
of the top
15 celebrity
brands
US$ 691
million
SUMMARY
5. Duff & Phelps 5
INTRODUCTION
Celebrity Brand
Endorsements in India
Celebrity endorsement has become
pervasive in advertising and
communications. In the 1980s, a number
of brands like Vimal, Thums Up and
Gwalior used star appeal in their
advertising to gain traction among the
diverse consumer base in India. Fast
forward to 2016, and the new age
ecommerce and technology companies
are using the same celebrity
endorsement centered strategy in order
to gain widespread market recognition.
Although the means of communication
and advertising have become much
broader with the advent of social media
and smartphones, consumer-focused
companies continue to align themselves
with powerful celebrity brands.
Corporates are also demanding
increasing involvement from celebrities
and actively engaging with end
consumers via showroom events, store
launches and social media interaction.
These celebrity endorsements expedite
brand recall which influences customer
behaviour and purchasing.
In the western countries, celebrity
endorsements have limited impact on
consumers’ purchase decisions.
However, in India, the scenario is fairly
different as celebrities are almost idolized
here, resulting in effective celebrity
endorsements. Based on our discussions
with talent and advertising agencies,
celebrities are believed to feature in close
to 50%1 of all commercial ads aired in
India. This is relatively high compared to
the U.S. where only approximately 20%2
of commercial advertisements feature
celebrities. The power of popular
personalities creates an emotional
attachment with Indian consumers that
drives them to choose a particular brand
endorsed by their favorite celebrity.
Over the last decade, the celebrity
endorsement space has evolved
significantly, not only as a result of new
mediums of advertising (Internet, digital
and social media), but also because
“celebritydom” is now not limited to just
Bollywood stars and cricketers. The
Indian Premier League, Indian Super
League, International Premier Tennis
League, Pro-Kabaddi League and Indian
Badminton League have given us several
new sports stars in addition to our
Olympic, and Asian and Commonwealth
Games medal winners. Indian television
also has several rising stars who are
slowly but surely finding their way into
mainstream cinema and serving as
brand ambassadors.
Based on our
discussions with
talent and
advertising
agencies,
celebrities are
believed to
feature in close
to 50%1 of all
commercial ads
aired in India,
compared to only
20%2 in the
United States.
(1) Why celebrities in India have runaway success with brand endorsements, by The Financial Express
(2) The Economic Value of Celebrity Endorsements, by Anita Elberse and Jeroen Verleun, by The Journal of
Advertising Research
6. 139 150 163 176 189
116 125 136
155
181
15 22 30 44 60
18 18 19 22 2412 13 15 17 20
2011 2012 2013 2014 2015
Advertising Industry Size (INR in Billion)
Print TV Digital Advertising OOH Radio
Duff & Phelps 6
INTRODUCTION
According to the 2016 Federation of
Indian Chambers of Commerce and
Industry (FICCI) report on the Indian
Media and Entertainment sector, Indian
ad spending in 2015 increased by 14.7%
to INR 475 billion over 2014. However,
digital advertising increased by 38% in
the same period, a clear sign that
corporates and advertisers are shifting
their focus from traditional to new
mediums that provide instantaneous
access to an identified target market.
India is now the second largest market,
after the United States, for YouTube,
Facebook, and many other social media
platforms.
Further, celebrities are no longer just
using brand endorsements as something
to bridge an income gap between films or
sports. A significant proportion of a
celebrity’s annual income is generated
through brand endorsements.
Celebrities and their agents are market
savvy businesspeople. Celebrities take
time to understand the endorsed products
and know what value the products bring,
especially for less popular brands.
International luxury brands, such as
Rado, Tissot or Louis Vuitton, continue to
be more attractive to celebrities, while
celebrities will avoid brands that may
have a negative image.
In a growing trend, celebrities are
extending their personal brands beyond
traditional television and print advertising.
Indian celebrities are now venturing into
businesses where they can further
leverage their brand value and marketing
presence. These celebrities are donning
the role of “Angel Ambassadors” for
young companies by becoming brand
ambassadors in exchange for an equity
stake in the company. For these
celebrities, it also means a deeper
commitment towards the endorsed
brands and higher potential returns given
the increased risk.
As forecasted in our 2014 report, Waiting
for the Encore, female endorsers have
risen to the top of celebrity brand value
rankings over the last two years. Overall,
female celebrity brand values contributed
approximately 32% of the total brand
value of the top 15 celebrities as
compared to approximately 20% in 2014.
On the regulatory front, in September
2016, the Ministry of Consumer Affairs
and Law approved changes in the
Consumer Protection Act to provide for a
jail term of up to five years, apart from a
penalty of INR 5 million, for false and
misleading ads. Through this initiative,
the government is aiming to curtail
misleading advertisements and ensure
more accountability on celebrity
endorsements. Making brand
ambassadors more accountable has
been in the spotlight since the alleged
presence of monosodium glutamate and
excess lead in Maggi noodles, which
were endorsed by movie actors such as
Amitabh Bachchan, Madhuri Dixit and
Preity Zinta.
Given the changes in the market and
regulations, this report aims to answer a
few simple questions.
• Who is the most valuable celebrity
brand in India?
• How has the brand value of top
celebrities evolved over the last 2
years?
• Who are the emerging stars in the
endorsement space?
The answers presented in this survey
report form a groundbreaking analysis.
We hope you enjoy our analysis and we
look forward to your feedback.
In a growing
trend, Indian
celebrities are
now venturing
into businesses
where they can
further leverage
their brand value
by donning the
role of “Angel
Ambassadors” for
young
companies.
Source: FICCI Report on the Media and Entertainment Sector 2016
7. Duff & Phelps 7
UNDERSTANDING ENDORSEMENTS
Overview of Celebrity
Brand Endorsements
Endorsement Deal Structure
The first step in building a methodology to
assess brand values is to understand
how celebrity endorsements are
structured. Based on our analysis, we
understand that a celebrity may be
engaged by a corporate or an advertiser
in two key engagement models.
In the first and most common model, a
celebrity will be contracted for a specified
term (usually one or two years) for a
fixed-fee payment that may be paid out
through an initial signing amount and a
balance upon completion of specified
activities. These celebrities are referred
to as brand ambassadors owing to their
long-term association with the endorsed
product. Normally, an annual
endorsement contract includes the
celebrity’s availability for a seven to ten
day period (eight hours a day), during
which time the advertiser may schedule
an event, photo shoot or ad shoot as the
campaign may require. The content that
the advertiser generates during these
activities may be within the contract term.
Of course, exclusivity provisions also
ensure that the celebrity for a period of
time may not promote a rival product or
brand after contract termination.
However, it is not uncommon for the
exclusivity provisions to be bought out by
rival advertisers.
For female celebrities, the potential is
comparatively larger than men. This is
because women may promote a range of
likenesses across a large spectrum of
products. For example, a female celebrity
may promote hair with a certain hair care
brand and flawless skin with a different
skin care brand.
The second, but less popular form of
engagement is a one-time appearance by
a celebrity for a specified event. This may
be in the form of a single advertisement
or a photo shoot or even an event
attendance. A celebrity may also be cast
as “acting talent” for a specified
advertisement. Such engagements are
charged on a daily basis, with the rates
being significantly different for annual
contracts versus one-time endorsements.
Social Media Influence
Brands and advertisers with limited
budgets may not sign a celebrity as a
brand ambassador, but instead may hire
them for individual campaigns to create
social media buzz. For instance,
Reliance General Insurance had a
campaign on Twitter which asked people
to pledge their support against child
labour. The campaign
#dontemploylittleones was supported by
Sachin Tendulkar and Viswanathan
Anand, among others. It was launched in
April 2016, trended globally at No. 4 and
No. 1 in India over three days, and was
picked up by the global press including
the New York Times, Huffington Post,
Gulf News, and Thompson Reuters. Non-
Governmental Organizations (NGOs)
from the United States, Africa, Canada,
Bangladesh, Nepal and the Middle East
also joined the cause as part of the
campaign.
Brands with
limited budget
may not sign a
celebrity as a
brand
ambassador, but
instead, may hire
them for
individual
campaigns to
create social
media buzz.
8. Duff & Phelps 8
Variation in Endorsement Fees
Interestingly, we noted that the rates
charged by celebrities for an annual
endorsement engagement significantly
differ across products and brands signed,
even in the same year. This is mainly
because certain brands are more
attractive to a celebrity, and their fee for
endorsements will vary by their inclination
to be associated with a certain brand.
Some celebrities will reduce their
endorsement fees for a brand which
helps a social cause.
Celebrities understand that being
affiliated with well-known brands, like
Coke or Pepsi, means that their images
and likenesses will have further reach
even to the remotest parts of the country
and can be more valuable than
endorsement fees. Similarly, youth-
centric iconic brands like Levi’s and
Guess and luxury brands like Rado,
Tissot or Louis Vuitton command
immense brand presence. Celebrities
are usually more keen to be associated
as ambassadors with these types of
brands for even a fraction of their usual
fees. Alcohol and tobacco brands provide
the best compensation, though A-listers
tend to steer clear of promoting these
brands mainly on account of the potential
for negative publicity.
Brand-Celebrity Fit
Engaging a celebrity for a brand
endorsement exercise is not a simple
task. The advertiser must first select the
right celebrity based on his or her fit to
the organization or the product. For
example, when Kareena Kapoor was
expecting her first child, she was offered
six endorsement deals by companies that
make products for babies and pregnant
women.1 She eventually chose to
endorse a home pregnancy testing kit.
The next step includes working with a
celebrity management agency to finalize
the details of the agreement, including
payment of a signing amount and
determining the period of engagement. A
percentage of the celebrity’s
endorsement fee is payable to the
agency as a commission for the services
they provide. In addition, celebrities also
incur the costs of a travelling entourage
of make-up artists, assistants, and
assorted staff. These costs can
sometimes be subsumed in the
endorsement fees or may be payable
over and above the celebrity’s
endorsement fee.
Some celebrities
will reduce their
endorsement
fees for a brand
which helps a
social cause.
UNDERSTANDING ENDORSEMENTS
Overview of Celebrity
Brand Endorsements
(1) Mom-To-Be Kareena Kapoor Khan Turns Down Six Maternity Brand Endorsements, by India Times article
dated October 2, 2016
9. Lux
Lakme
Pantene
Colgate
Head &
Shoulders
Duff & Phelps 9
UNDERSTANDING ENDORSEMENTS
Current Celebrity Brand
Endorsements
As part of our analysis we analyzed the top 25 Bollywood celebrities. These celebrities endorsed over 130 brands in
20 different sectors over the last twelve months ending August 2016. Some of the key highlights of our research are
presented below:
Top Sectors Using Celebrity Endorsers
Personal Care
Food &
Beverages
Automobiles Ecommerce Jewelry
Kareena Kapoor
Anushka Sharma
Shraddha Kapoor
Deepika Padukone
Alia Bhatt
Salman Khan
Alia Bhatt
Priyanka Chopra
Shah Rukh Khan
Anushka Sharma
Ranbir Kapoor
Akshay Kumar
Amitabh Bachchan
Ranveer Singh
Alia Bhatt
Ranveer Singh
Shah Rukh Khan
Ranbir Kapoor
Alia Bhatt
Amitabh Bachchan
Amitabh Bachchan
Kareena Kapoor
Sonam Kapoor
Deepika Padukone
Shraddha Kapoor
Source: TAM Media Data for the period September 2015 to August 2016, Duff & Phelps Analysis
Rankings are based on Secondages on TV; secondages means the number of seconds the celebrity appears on TV for a particular brand
Key Sector Trends:
• Direct-To-Home , Automobiles, Real Estate, and ecommerce are dominated by male endorsers.
• Personal Care, Paints and Consumer Durables are primarily dominated by female endorsers.
• ecommerce emerged as one of the top five sectors which use celebrity endorsements.
• New entrant, Alia Bhatt, featured as one of the top five endorsers in four of the top sectors using celebrity
endorsers.
Thums Up
Magnum
Kwality Wall’s
Royal Stag
Tropicana Slice
Renault
TVS
Honda
Ciaz
Hero
BigBasket
Quikr
Make My Trip
Snapdeal
Ask Me Bazaar
Kalyan Jewellers
Malabar Gold &
Diamonds
Jewellers
Tanishq
Nirvana Diamond
Jewellry
PNG
Top Advertising Brands
Top Endorsers
10. Duff & Phelps 10
UNDERSTANDING ENDORSEMENTS
Current Celebrity Brand
Endorsements
Sector-wide Celebrity Endorsements
Sectors dominated by female celebrities1 Sectors dominated by male celebrities1
The top two sectors dominated by female
celebrity endorsers are Personal Care
and Consumer Durables. As per our
analysis, Personal Care contributes 50%
of total celebrity endorsements in India,
hence this sector is of critical importance
in the endorsement space. On the other
hand, automobile and ecommerce
sectors mostly featured male celebrities
in television advertisements.
Overall, female celebrity brand values
contributed 32% of the total brand value
of the top 15 celebrities. As highlighted in
the chart below, the rise can primarily be
attributed to an increase in the number of
endorsements. The number of brands
endorsed by top female celebrities has
seen 50% growth over the last two years
led by Deepika Padukone, whose number
of endorsements has more than doubled.
The number of
brands endorsed
by top female
celebrities has
seen 50% growth
over the last two
years
Male
95%
Female
5%
Automobiles
Male
88%
Female
12%
Ecommerce
2016:
100+
brands
2014:
70
brands
Total Number of Brand Endorsements by Top Female Celebrities2
(1) Source: TAM Media Data; charts are based on Secondages on Television during the period of September 2015 to
August 2016
(2) Analysis based on endorsements for Deepika Padukone, Priyanka Chopra, Anushka Sharma, Alia Bhatt, Kareena
Kapoor, Katrina Kaif, Sonakshi Sinha and Shraddha Kapoor
Male
14%
Female
86%
Personal Care
Male
43%
Female
57%
Consumer Durables
11. Duff & Phelps 11
RECENT TRENDS
Celebrity Endorsements in
Ecommerce
Ecommerce firms and start-ups are well
funded with overseas investments and
have been signing a number of celebrity
endorsers over the past few years.
Innovative marketing events have
spurred the trend of ecommerce
companies joining hands with Bollywood
stars for promotional purposes.
As reported in Economic Times1,
celebrities are charging online firms a
significant premium as compared to other
types of endorsement deals varying by
categories. The newspaper article further
mentions that Shah Rukh Khan and
Amitabh Bachchan had charged INR 8-12
crore annually for ecommerce
endorsements, which works out to be 20-
25% higher than rates for some well-
known offline brands they currently
endorse.
The ecommerce sector in India emerged
as one of the top 5 sectors that used
celebrity endorsers. Our research
revealed that 11 ecommerce companies /
start-ups have used major celebrities for
endorsement purposes over the last 12
months. With the Indian ecommerce
market estimated to reach $119 Billion2
by the year 2020, this trend is expected
to continue. In 2015 alone, three of the
top five ecommerce advertisers on
television used celebrities for
endorsements. Online grocery delivery
company Big Basket was the top
ecommerce advertiser on television
(endorsed by celebrity Shah Rukh Khan)
during the 12 months ended August
2016. It was closely followed by Quikr
(endorsed by Ranveer Singh) and Askme
(endorsed by Ranbir Kapoor).
This trend is factored into our brand value
analysis through higher average
endorsement fees charged by these
celebrities.
In 2015,
three of the top
five
ecommerce
advertisers used
celebrities for
endorsements on
television.
(1) Ecommerce companies offering up to 200% more than offline brands for celebrity endorsements, by Economic Times
article dated 11 August 2015
(2) Indian ecommerce market to grow fastest globally over three years: Morgan Stanley, by Economic Times article dated
18 Feb 2016
Top Ecommerce Endorsers
Celebrity Ecommerce Brands Endorsed
Shah Rukh Khan
BigBasket
YepMe
Ranveer Singh
Quikr
MakeMyTrip
Ranbir Kapoor
AskMe
Saavn
12. Duff & Phelps 12
RECENT TRENDS
Co-ownership Model of
Endorsement
Due to their brand and marketing
presence, celebrities are increasingly
taking equity stakes in exchange for
becoming the face of the businesses /
start-ups they represent. Celebrities
are leveraging the value of their
personal brands by getting involved
with different types of businesses.
Celebrities engaging in the co-
ownership model are being referred to
as “Angel Ambassadors”. Under the
co-ownership model, the celebrity co-
owns a part of the business venture /
brand(s) which he/she is promoting.
For the celebrities, this indicates a
deeper commitment towards the
brands they promote. The equity
shares of such early-stage companies
are a risky asset class that can
generate impressive returns.
Under the
co-ownership
model, the
celebrity co-owns
a part of the
business venture/
brand(s) which
he/ she is
promoting.
Celebrity Brand / Company with Co-Ownership
Amitabh Bachchan1
Became the brand ambassador of Just Dial in
December 2010 and subsequently was allotted
nearly 60,000 shares in the company. Realized
impressive returns when the company had its IPO in
2013.
Sachin Tendulkar2
A UAE-based travel portal had Sachin Tendulkar as
a minority stakeholder and brand ambassador until
April 2016. The cricketer holds a 7.5% stake in the
travel portal founded in 2007.
Salman
Khan3
Salman Khan acted as the brand ambassador of the
company from 2012 till June 2016. The actor also
owns a minor stake (undisclosed amount) in the
travel company. Although Salman Khan’s
association as Yatra’s brand ambassador ended in
June 2016, he continues to have a stake in the
company.
(1) Just Dial was an endorsement deal; someone said invest in the stock, so I did: Amitabh Bachchan, by
Economic Times article dated 18 June 2015
(2) Sachin bats for online travel portal, by Business Standard article dated 23 October 2013
(3) Salman Khan picks up stake in Yatra, by Livemint article dated 27 March 2012
13. Duff & Phelps 13
RECENT TRENDS
Celebrity Brand Extensions
Indian celebrities are increasingly
extending their brands by venturing into
businesses where they can further
leverage their value. Celebrities such as
Virat Kohli have management teams
which take care of financial investments
and business ventures. Virat Kohli, who is
a co-owner in seven different businesses,
has made financial investments in FC
Goa and Chisel. In other ventures, he has
sweat equity1. He also launched his
animated avatar which will be further
leased to brands for advertising.
Indian ODI cricket team captain
Mahendra Singh Dhoni ventured into the
business of fitness along with his
business manager, Arun Pandey, with the
Sportsfit line of fitness centers. Yuvraj
Singh has also started investing in start-
ups through his early-stage venture
capital fund, YouWeCan Ventures.
Similar to Kohli, Dhoni and Yuvraj have
both launched their own clothing brands,
SEVEN and YWC Fashion, respectively,
in 2016.
This trend is not limited to sports stars
alone. Bollywood celebrity Sunny Leone’s
recent line of investments includes
fragrances, a franchise for box league
cricket, a web-based short story and an
online game, among others. She is also
believed to be looking to enter categories
such as shoes and apparel with her own
line of products.
In Hollywood, this is already a well-
established trend. In 2012, Hollywood
celebrity Jessica Alba co-founded The
Honest Company which launched a line
of eco-friendly baby and family products
distributed through both international
retail and an online subscription service.
In 2015, The Honest Company raised
$100 million of Series D funds at an
implied valuation of $1.7 billion, bringing
the company’s total venture capital raise
to $228 million.
Indian celebrities
are increasingly
extending their
brands by
venturing into
businesses
where they can
further leverage
their value.
Virat Kohli has
launched his
animated avatar
which will be
further leased to
brands for
advertising.
Virat Kohli - Business and Sports Ventures
Sports Ventures
1 FC Goa Football (Indian Super League)
2 UAE Royals
Tennis (International Premier
Tennis League)
3 Bengaluru Yodhas Wrestling (Pro Wrestling League)
Business Ventures
4 Chisel Chain of Gyms
5 WROGN Fashion Clothing
6 Sport Convo Sports-related Social Network
7 Stepathlon Children Fitness
(1) “Sweat equity shares means equity shares that are issued by a company to its directors or employees at
a discount or for consideration, other than cash, for providing their know-how or making available rights in
the nature of intellectual property rights or value additions, in this case serving as brand ambassadors.”
14. Duff & Phelps 14
METHODOLOGY
Our Approach and
Methodology
In assessing celebrity brand value, we
faced several challenges that one would
not normally encounter when valuing a
corporate brand using conventional and
generally accepted valuation
methodologies. Most importantly, a
celebrity brand is not an indefinite-lived
asset.
In addition, a celebrity brand cannot be
monetized through a licensing
arrangement. Although Virat Kohli
recently launched his animated avatar for
licensing out to brands for promotional
purposes, this trend is fairly new. While it
may be argued that a celebrity can earn a
royalty from products which he or she
has associated his name and likeness
(case in point being Michael Jordan and
the “Air Jordan” line of Nike products),
such arrangements are limited to a few
participating celebrities.
In India, such arrangements are not very
popular, barring a few deals (e.g.,
Deepika Padukone and Van Heusen,
Kareena Kapoor and Globus). Clearly,
the earnings from a brand endorsement
represent the largest contributor to a
celebrity’s brand.
It is important to note that as part of our
analysis, we have not taken into
consideration the amount a celebrity
earns from films and production houses
that he or she runs. We contend that
while these aspects do impact their
earning capacity, they have no bearing
on the celebrity’s income from
endorsements alone. Our assessment
represents the brand value of a celebrity
based purely on his or her earnings
potential from brand endorsements.
In order to adequately capture the definite
nature of a celebrity brand, we
considered several conventional
methodologies. However, we did not think
it is appropriate to simulate increases /
decreases in forward earnings in our
methodology since the popularity of a
particular celebrity is limited to the
present and the recent past. Bad celebrity
brand management (e.g., a year of flops
or bad performances) by the celebrity can
quickly result in a lower demand for his or
her services as a brand endorser.
It is important to
note that as part
of our analysis,
we have not
taken into
consideration the
amount a
celebrity earns
from films and
production
houses that he or
she runs.
Determine
brand
ranking on
the basis of
various
parameters
Brand
Ranking
Average
endorsement
fee multiplied
by the number
of endorsement
deals
Average
Annual
Endorsement
Revenue
The applicable
brand multiple
represents the
capitalization
rate adjusted
for recent
success and
popularity
Applicable
Brand
Multiple
15. Duff & Phelps 15
METHODOLOGY
Our assessment is based on the current
rankings of celebrities, average
endorsement fee rates, current number of
annual endorsements, applicable brand
multiple and a popularity index
adjustment.
Celebrity Brand Ranking
There are several sources and agencies
that rank celebrities on the basis of
proprietary tools and methodologies. For
our assessment, we have used a
combination of rankings available in the
public domain. However, over the course
of our discussions with experts from the
celebrity endorsement industry, we found
that several of these rankings ignore a
celebrity’s social media involvement.
Social media may not be the most
important aspect when selecting a
particular celebrity, but it definitely plays
a huge role in building credibility and
developing a fully engaged fan base.
Some celebrities have achieved
reasonable success with carefully
planned social media programs. Amitabh
Bachchan, one of the most popular
Indians around the globe, has massive
popularity on both Twitter and Facebook
owing to the magnificent versatility in his
films and his larger-than-life personality
off camera. Mr. Bachchan also shares his
views through his Twitter account on
many issues surrounding India’s social
and cultural network. His open letter to
his grand daughters went viral in
September 2016. In the letter, he spoke
about how they should embrace their
womanhood and make their life decisions
themselves. The letter’s release seemed
to be well coordinated with his latest
movie, which was favorably received by
audiences.
Our celebrity social media rankings are
based on the number of Twitter followers
and Facebook likes a celebrity has on
their official pages. Of the celebrities we
assessed, the table on the next page
represents their social media presence
as of September 2016. Our concluded
brand rankings are based on a weighted
average of various celebrities across their
social media presence as well as the
various rankings from sources in the
public domain. The celebrity brand rank
so computed has been accounted for in
the popularity index adjustment.
Our assessment
is based on the
current rankings
of celebrities,
average
endorsement fee
rates, current
number of annual
endorsements,
applicable brand
multiple and a
popularity index
adjustment.
Our Approach and
Methodology
Determine
brand
ranking on
the basis of
various
parameters
Brand
Ranking
Average
endorsement
fee multiplied
by the number
of endorsement
deals
Average
Annual
Endorsement
Revenue
The applicable
brand multiple
represents the
capitalization
rate adjusted
for recent
success and
popularity
Applicable
Brand
Multiple
16. Duff & Phelps 16
Average Endorsement Fee
In valuing the average endorsement fee
rate, we have consulted industry experts
from talent management agencies,
advertising agencies, and consultants, as
well as secondary sources such as news
and media articles.
Adjusted Brand Multiple
The applicable brand multiple represents
the rate of capitalization for brands,
adjusted for the following parameters:
1. Age: We have made adjustments for
the age of the celebrity in conjunction
with the current and typical peak age.
Unfortunately, the Indian population
is rather cruel to female celebrities in
that there are no female celebrities
over the age of 40 that have made
the rankings. It should be noted that
stars like Hema Malini are still
actively endorsing products despite
not breaking into the list of top
celebrity endorsers.
On the other hand, aging male
celebrities in India continue to remain
in high demand for endorsements,
mainly driven by a late peak age and
continued film successes. Movie
stars like Amitabh Bachchan, age 74,
continue to remain amongst the most
sought-after celebrities for
endorsement.
2. Recent success: This is analyzed by
reviewing the number of hits (good
performances) versus flops (bad
performances) a celebrity has had
over the last 10 films or important
performances.
3. Popularity index: This is computed
by looking at celebrity brand rankings
and average secondages1.
Celebrity Brand Value
Finally, celebrity brand value has been
computed as the adjusted average
annual endorsement revenue earned by
a celebrity (after deducting relevant costs
including taxes) multiplied by the adjusted
brand multiple so derived.
Celebrity brand
value has been
computed as the
adjusted average
annual
endorsement
revenue earned
by a celebrity
multiplied by the
adjusted brand
multiple.
Social Media Presence (Figures in Millions) (September 2016)
Celebrity Twitter Followers Facebook Fans Total
Salman Khan 19 32 51
Deepika Padukone 16 32 48
Amitabh Bachchan 22 24 46
Virat Kohli 12 31 43
Shah Rukh Khan 21 20 41
Priyanka Chopra 15 22 37
Hrithik Roshan 15 16 31
Mahendra Singh Dhoni 6 19 25
METHODOLOGY
(1) Secondages means the number of seconds the celebrity appears on TV for a particular brand
Our Approach and
Methodology
17. Duff & Phelps 17
CONCLUSION
Celebrity Brand Values
Shah Rukh Khan still rules the
endorsement space and remains the
most valuable brand endorser in India,
estimated at $131 million. However, other
celebrities such as Virat Kohli, Deepika
Padukone and Ranveer Singh have
made great strides in the endorsement
space over the last two years.
Virat Kohli, valued at $92 million, takes
the second rank, closely followed by
Deepika Padukone at $86 million. The
total brand value of the top 15 celebrities
in India is over $691 million.
We note that there are no female sports
celebrities in the top 15 celebrity brands
in the country. However, with the recent
success of female athletes such as PV
Sindhu in the 2016 Olympics, this might
be slated for change. Sindhu has already
been signed by Vizag Steel and Bank of
Baroda as their brand ambassador.
Further, Aamir Khan, who held the 5th
rank in our 2014 analysis, has not been
considered in this year’s analysis. He is
currently not endorsing any brands and
his association with Snapdeal was
discontinued. This might be a temporary
phase and given his track record one
could expect his return to the
endorsement space.
Key Conclusions
• On average, male celebrities
command 83% higher endorsement
fee over their female A-list peers as
compared to 90% in 2014.
• Within the top 15 celebrities, the value
of female celebrity brands now
accounts for over 32% as compared to
just 20% in 2014.
• Another notable change is the rise of
women celebrity endorsers to the top
of the brand value rankings led by
Deepika Padukone, Priyanka Chopra
and Alia Bhatt. Female endorsers
have made great strides in catching
up with their male counterparts and
now are at the top of the wishlist of
marketers in India.
From our 2014 celebrity brand valuation
report conclusion, we forecasted a
change towards female celebrity
endorsers becoming A-listers. That
change has definitely come about within
the last two years. Given the growing
trend of brand extensions and co-
ownerships in the recent times, the
celebrity brand endorsements are
expected to experience a strong tailwind.
Now is the time to embrace the change.
The total brand
value of the top
15 celebrities in
India is about
$691 million.
“While the male celebrities
continue to rule the top 15
with Brand SRK at $131
million in brand value, it is
Brand Deepika, Priyanka,
and Alia, collectively valued
at $154 million, who are
pushing the boundaries.”
Aviral Jain
Director
Duff & Phelps India
NEW ENTRANTS
#7
Ranveer
Singh
US$36 Mn
#14
Alia
Bhatt
US$23 Mn
TOP GAINERS
#2
Virat
Kohli
2014 - #4
#3
Deepika
Padukone
2014 - #7
#5
Priyanka
Chopra
2014 - #11
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